Su Vida De Lucha
by Lepori
Summary: He had to survive all of it: his mother's death, struggles he faced as a Nation, and most of all, the man with the deceiving smile named Spain. From colony to country, the world would eventually recognize him as Mexico.
1. Intuition

A/N: Well, I hate myself for creating _another_ fanfiction when I have so many others that need to be finished first, but I just can't seem to control myself. This one is quite different from my other stories. It's the same in the sense that it has an OC, but it's different because I actually have to research about this. xD I never thought I'd write a Hetalia fanfiction like this one, so it's a bit of a challenge for me, but I'm up for it. This is about a Nation who I greatly wish was in Hetalia, but because this is not so, this will have to suffice.

Anyway, I'm going to try my best and make this story seem Hetalia-like even though it's using historical figures and events. I obviously won't be able to include everything, because the history for every nation is just way too long, so I'm only going to write about the really significant parts. Please bear with me on this.

Concerning updates, they will not be constant because researching takes quite a bit of patience and time, so I'll only be able to update this fanfiction whenever I have a good amount of time to spare, though I will try to not make the gaps between updates too long. So far I have two chapters written out, so for the time being, this is what you're going to get.

I hope you enjoy my story about my OC!Mexico. :D

* * *

_This story takes place sometime during the late 1400's and early 1500's of the land which was described as The New World to those who lived on the other side of the globe. The specific setting for this story is in a region located in the central part of the newly discovered landmass._

Chapter 1: Intuition_  
_

A little boy was happily playing with a wild turkey he had claimed as his pet. He chased it around the room. This was just one of his usual daytime activities. Others consisted of walking around the village and visiting residents or watching women making food, which he usually got to eat when they were finished.

"What are you doing, Tenochtitlan?" asked a voice.

The little boy turned around and saw a woman walking towards him. She was rather beautiful with a very tribal look about her, though the most striking feature of her outfit was her headdress, the large vibrant blue and green feathers attracting the most attention.

"Mama!" he said happily. "I was playing with my turkey!"

"You caught another one?"

"Yes! But see, I put a necklace around him." He picked up the turkey and showed his mother the very fancy necklace around his pet. "Now nobody can steal him so I don't lose another turkey!"

The woman laughed and her son only smiled in response. "Are you hungry?"

The boy, named Tenochtitlan, nodded. "Yes! Can we eat now?"

"Of course."

The boy followed his mother into her room. It had a great view. The room was atop a pyramid that overlooked the village. The two loved to just sit there and looked at the setting sun on clear days, like today.

The woman placed her headdress down and sunk onto her throne. She sighed and looked at her son, smiling. She patted her lap and he put down the turkey, scurrying over to her. She picked him up and sat him down on her lap.

"So mama," he began. "Are you happy?"

"Hmm? What do you mean?"

"Well, because your empire is so big! A lot of the people told me so!"

She chuckled. "Yes, I suppose so. The recent alliance seems like a very good thing for us."

A few women brought bowls of food as they were discussing. "But more importantly, are _you_ happy, Tenochtitlan?"

"Yes! As long as mama is happy, then I will be happy too, because mama's happiness is also mine!"

She smiled and pet her son's head. "I'm glad to hear that. I hope that we can continue to live the same way we are doing right now, so that way you can continue to be happy."

Tenochtitlan smiled and hugged his mother.

"Oh look, the food is here."

"Yay! We get to eat now!"

The woman laughed at her son's enthusiasm. She looked at his joyous expression as he fed himself but also his pet turkey. She really loved her empire that she and her rulers were able to establish.

She hoped that they could live like this for a little while longer, but she couldn't help but feel that something horrible was soon to come. She hadn't spoken about these things with anyone, especially her son, for she didn't want to frighten him.

But she couldn't help it. Too many strange things had happened recently. For one, she had seen a strange appearance in the sky to the east. A fire had consumed the temple of Huitzilopochtli. A lightning bolt had destroyed the straw temple of Xiuhtecuhtli. Then there was the appearance of streaking fire across the oceans, the boiling and flooding of a nearby lake of her current residence. A woman had wept in the middle of the night. And then there was that capturing of an unknown creature with a fishing net.

All of these were bad omens to the woman and she only prayed to the gods that nothing bad would happen to her people or her beloved son.

* * *

A/N: Pronouncing those names is a bit difficult, so don't try it. xD It's not difficult to guess who Mexico's mother is though.

To better understand the chapter, I've decided to put some historical footnotes at the bottom here:

- At this point in the story, Mexico is known as "Tenochtitlan" which was a _major_ city of the Aztec Empire. Ruins of Tenochtitlan can be found in present day Mexico City. Yeah, kinda confusing, but it'll make sense later. lol

- The alliance the woman was talking about was called "The Aztec Triple Alliance" which consisted of the cities (?) Tenochtitlan, Texcoco, and Tlacopan, Teno being the "seat" of the Aztec empire.

- Wild turkeys were domesticated by the Aztecs, which is why Tenochtitlan has one as a pet.

- Those omens the woman had are real, or they were believed to be bad omens by the Aztec Empire. These omens were assumed to have happened 10 years before the Spaniards arrival in the Americas.

Like I had said previously, this is my first time writing a Hetalia fanfiction this way, so please don't be harsh with me on the historical facts. I'm not a historian! Dx I'm trying my best to write this from the resources that are available to me. ;_;


	2. Outsiders

A/N: Well, here's the only other chapter I have written out at the moment. You'll finally get to see Spain! Yay! :D Sadly though, I'm not going to make him all sweet and motherly throughout the entire story. Because as we all know, Spanish history is...yeah...

Plus, I also heard that the lovable Spain can also be viewed as a double-faced character, like Russia. Wow.

* * *

Chapter 2: Outsiders

Tenochtitlan watched his mother pace around the room. He looked at her worriedly. "Mama, what's wrong?"

She stopped pacing and turned, smiling at him. "It's nothing. Don't worry about it."

"I can tell that…something is bothering you mama."

The woman gave a small frown and said, "Moctezuma just left to greet the outsiders."

"Outsiders?"

"Yes. I don't understand what he's doing. Why is he greeting them? Was he not aware of all those omens that occurred? Nothing good will come of this. I don't want my people to be harmed…"

Tenochtitlan started to feel afraid. "He's really bringing them here?"

"Yes, men from a faraway land. But I don't trust them one bit. I just don't. There is something about them that doesn't seem right."

"Are they like…the two men that talked with 'Zuma a while back?"

Azteca walked over to her son and picked him up, holding him in her arms. "Yes, they were."

"Did you find out what they said to him mama?"

"Unfortunately, yes I did. This man…I believe his name was…Cortes…was spoken about with Moctezuma by those two men. Apparently Cortes told him that the people of Cholula were disrespectful to him, therefore they were punished, meaning he killed them."

Tenochtitlan's eyes widened. "…what?"

"Yes…it's true my son. And as long as us Aztecs show this Cortes man some respect and we give gifts of gold, we will be safe and avoid being killed."

"But…but…but that's not right mama!"

"I know, I know."

"We need to do something!"

"Tenochtitlan, don't be foolish. Until we know the full extent of their power, we shouldn't do anything at this time."

The boy looked displeased but worried all at once. Azteca held him to her bosom. "Don't worry Tenochtitlan. I'm going to protect you, no matter what the costs."

"Mama…"

* * *

A while later, Moctezuma entered Azteca's room, where she was relaxing with her son and his pet turkey.

"Azteca."

The woman quickly got up and walked over to him. "Are you alright Moctezuma?"

"Yes, I'm fine."

She paused. "So…I'm assuming you really did invite those men here?"

"Yes I did, but they seem to be calm right now."

"But for how long? They could easily try to pick a fight with us."

"That is not why I came here Azteca. Cortes wants to see you. Please, follow me. Bring Tenochtitlan along as well."

Azteca looked over to her son who was petting the turkey. She looked worried, but she had to obey her leader. "Alright." She dressed herself accordingly (though she really only put on her accessories she had taken off earlier) and knelt down in front of her son.

"Tenochtitlan, we're going to go meet the men Moctezuma brought here, okay?"

"But mama, I don't want to see them…"

"We have too." She stood up and held out her hand. "Come Teno."

The small boy grabbed his mother's hand and followed her out with Moctezuma. Tenochtitlan left his pet turkey in the room, for he didn't want anything to happen to him.

Moctezuma led them to another room where two men were standing, looking at the wall and interior design.

"This, is our nation we were speaking to you about, Sir Cortes."

The man looked at Azteca and eyed her, but she kept a straight face and showed no signs of emotion. Then he looked down at the child whose hand she was holding. The other man next to him looked much younger, but nevertheless, intimidating. His smile appeared warm at first, but Tenochtitlan didn't like him at all.

Cortes glanced at the man next to him. "What do you think, Spain?" He spoke in a language that was foreign to Azteca.

Spain looked at Azteca, and then at Tenochtitlan. He spoke to Azteca. "Are you what I am?"

"That depends. What exactly are _you_?"

Spain smiled. "I'm a Nation, just like yourself. I am called Spain. Pleased to meet you!"

Azteca said nothing, and Tenochtitlan held her hand tighter.

"Would you like a moment alone with them, Spain?"

"Yes please."

Cortes exited the room and Moctezuma followed. While they were off doing their own business, Spain casually walked around Azteca and Tenochtitlan.

"So, Azteca, are you a Nation?"

"I have lived for a very long time, and I age slower than the rest of my people. At first they thought I was a goddess, but then they came to the realization that I was actually a representation of them, a populace, a culture. An empire."

"Oh, I see. So then you _are_ what I am. And this boy, who is he?"

"This is my son. He too ages slower than other children."

Spain knelt down and looked at Tenochtitlan. The young child looked at him. He had never seen a person with green eyes, or colored eyes for that matter, which only made him more wary of the man. "And what is your name?" he asked with a smile.

Tenochtitlan hid behind his mother and didn't respond. Azteca decided to give Spain an answer instead. "His name is Tenochtitlan."

"Ah! I see! He's the embodiment of the city then?"

"Yes, and my heir, if anything should ever happen to me."

"Interesting. Then he will become the next Nation, huh?" He said the last part more to himself than to them.

"Well Azteca," Spain began as he stood up. "I think it's only fair to warn you that as long as there are no signs of rebellion and you meet our demands, no harm shall come to you or your son."

"How can I be certain? You already brought in other tribes that do not like us who are alleged with your kind. That enough gives me a reason to not trust you."

Spain's face started to take a more serious turn. "Despite the fact that Cortes is my commander, it's not like he does not ask me for my opinion. I am his Nation in a humanized form after all."

Azteca said nothing and was on guard. Tenochtitlan continued to hide behind his mother. Spain glanced at him and gave a smile. The young child didn't like the look in his eyes at all.

"You know, I always wondered how beings like us are able to reproduce. I never found that out. I have an older brother, but we never knew who was our mother or our father. We were just…there. It's difficult to explain. That's why I was always curious as to how some of our kind were able to have children, if you will. There was also a great empire back where I came from as well."

"Really?" It was more of a statement than a question.

"Yes! Though he is no more, he left two grandsons in his place."

"I see."

There was a pause, and then Spain spoke again. "You know Azteca, if anything should happen to you, you can rest assured that I'll make sure Tenochtitlan survives."

"What?"

"My commander might hurt him, but I'll make sure he doesn't. He's such a small child after all. I wouldn't want anything bad to happen to him!"

"I don't believe you."

"We're both Nations. You should understand how our people get whenever they're in a period of war or battle. I don't want Tenochtitlan to get hurt. I hate seeing children harmed or killed, even by my own people." Spain looked at her deeply and said, "Just trust me Azteca. I promise I'll make sure he survives if anything should happen."

The woman looked at her son, then back at Spain, then at her son again. She thought for a few moments and gave a subtle sigh without opening her mouth. She looked at Spain and said, "Alright, I will trust you. Please, if anything should ever happen to me, take good care of my son…Spain."

"Of course I will. I'll make sure he survives! You can count on it!" He smiled, which reassured Azteca, but left Tenochtitlan with a lot of doubts.

_He has a weird smile_, he thought to himself.

_

* * *

_

Azteca trusted Spain a little more after that, though she remained to be on her guard while the Spaniards occupied the city. Her worries returned though when a villager ran to her room and barged in.

"A-A-Azteca!"

She stood up immediately and pushed him out of the room, for young Tenochtitlan was sleeping. Outside, she talked with the villager.

"What is it?"

"The outsiders have taken Moctezuma as prisoner!"

"What!" She looked panicked and afraid. "I knew it…I _knew_ it! I knew nothing good would come of this!" She clutched her hands at her sides.

"We housed that man…that Nation…and all their followers…we've fed them…we gave them gifts of gold…we replaced our gods with their idols…and then they go and do _this_!"

The villager looked saddened and afraid. Then he said, "They demand more gold...Azteca…"

"_More?_ We already gave them more than they deserve!"

"But they want more! If we don't meet their demands-"

Azteca looked like she wanted to attack something, but she refrained from doing so and held her hand to her forehead, frustrated and panicked.

"Azteca…what do you plan to do?"

She looked at the villager. He continued to speak. "You are the embodiment of our great empire. You can do something to stop this. You have lived a long time. You must know by now what to do in dire situations…"

The woman thought and thought. She glanced into her room where her legacy was sleeping. _Tenochtitlan…my son…_

"…I guess we might as well give them the gold."

"But Azteca-!"

"Would you rather risk them killing Moctezuma and seizing Tenochtitlan?"

"No but-"

"We will give them gold."

The villager looked sad and disappointed. "Are you sure?"

"Yes. I shall do it myself."

"Azteca-"

"I'm not afraid of them. Don't worry."

"Alright. I…understand…"

* * *

Azteca and a few others had gathered the amount of gold and personally handed it to Cortes and his men. Moctezuma was in chains, and it made Azteca gravely sad to see her leader in such a situation. This only made her hate the Spaniards even more.

As the Empire watched the men lustfully eying all the gold with smiles stretching across their faces and laughter of joy roaring throughout the room, Spain walked next to Azteca and said, "Good decision."

She felt angry when he spoke. "Excuse me?"

"You could have easily revolted against us."

"Then you would have killed Moctezuma."

"Possibly. But would have it mattered? You might have still continued to oppose us either way."

"As long as Tenochtitlan, the city and my son, are not harmed…then…but don't do anything to my leader either!"

"We won't! You've been cooperative so far! That's great! We'll just see how this goes from here on in, okay? And I'm still keeping my promise in making sure your son survives anything that may occur!"

He smiled at her again, but she was starting to want to smack that smile off his face at this point.

* * *

Tenochtitlan didn't like how things were going, and he'd get worried because his mother would get stressed by everything that was happening. "Is Moctezuma going to be okay, mama?"

"I hope so. We gave them gold…so they better not do anything to harm him."

"Mama, why don't you do something?"

She gave a sad smile and petted his head. "Tenochtitlan, I may be the Empire, but I still have to follow my leader's orders. And since he's been taken prisoner, I don't have any way of knowing what he wants me to do."

"But the people should listen to you mama! You can think of a way to help him! You can do anything!"

Azteca adored her son's naïveté and confidence in her, but he was young, so he didn't know how serious this situation exactly was. "I'll think of something Tenochtitlan. For now…we'll have to obey those…_people_."

"Okay mama…"

Spain knocked on the door frame (which kinda hurt because it was made of stone) and walked inside. "Can I come in?"

"You're already inside."

He laughed. "Aww, come on, don't look at me with that face!"

"When are you going to leave us alone?"

"Actually, that's what I came to talk to you about. I have to go somewhere with my commander, but I'll return."

"Where are you going?"

"There are a few…complications on an island near here, and we have to take care of it accordingly."

"Complications?"

"Nothing you need to worry about. Anyway, I'll be gone for a while, but I'll return along with my master and the soldiers we're taking with us."

"So then you're all leaving." She would have smiled but decided not to.

"I said some, not all."

"What? Why do you need to leave 'some' here?"

"To make sure you guys don't plan a revolt or anything! They'll keep an eye on you."

"Hold on a minute-!"

"It's my commander's idea, not mine. But do you really want to bring it up with him?"

Azteca glared at Spain. He only looked at her with an emotionless face and said nothing. He began to walk out of the room.

"That's what I came to tell you. And don't try to run, because it won't get you anywhere. My commander has his eyes on Tenochtitlan, and he's not going to let him get away." That was all he said as he exited the room.

Tenochtitlan looked up at his mother. "Mama…"

She held him close to her. "Don't say anything Teno. It's going to be alright."

_I need to do something_, she thought. _This has gone on far enough! It's time to take action!_

_

* * *

_

A/N: So...yeah. I'm trying to make Spain more serious, but also trying to keep his canon personality. We'll see how this goes as the story progresses. Time for some footnotes, and there's a lot this time oops:

- Concerning the title for this fic: "Lucha" means "struggle" in Spanish, if I'm not mistaken. (If I am, somebody please correct me!) Therefore, the translated title to this story is: "His Life of Struggle", except it sounds cooler in Spanish. lol

- The two men "Teno" was talking about are Pedro de Alvarado and Bernardino Vázquez de Tapia. They were sent by Cortes as ambassadors to Tenochtitlan.

- His name can either be spelled "Moctezuma" or "Montezuma". While Microsoft Word and Firefox think "Montezuma" is correct, I'm going to leave it as "Moctezuma".

- _"Moctezuma had apparently tried to stop the advance of Cortés and his troops, and it seems that he ordered the leaders of Cholula to try to stop him. Cholula had a very small army, since as a sacred city, they put their confidence in their prestige and their gods. According to the chronicles of the Tlaxcalteca, the priest of Cholula expected to use the power of Quetzalcoatl against them._

_La Malinche told Cortés, after talking to the wife of one of the lords of Cholula, that the locals planned to murder the Spaniards in their sleep and although he did not know if the rumor was true or not, Cortés ordered a pre-emptive strike, urged on by the Tlaxcalans, the enemies of the Cholulans. The Spaniards seized and killed many of the local nobles to serve as a lesson."_

Source from Wikipedia. Yeah yeah, I know it's not the _best_ source for information, but it's pretty convenient.

_- _The empire Spain was talking about is Rome, so obviously the "grandsons" are North and South Italy.

- The natives that allied themselves with Cortes and his men were the Tlaxcalans, who hated the Aztecs and were bitter towards them after the Flower Wars. They found that the Spaniards would be a good group to ally themselves with against the Aztecs. I mean, at first they fought Cortes, but eventually that conclusion came to them, so they decided to become allies with him and his men.

- Moctezuma had given Cortes, the Spaniards and their allied natives they picked up a long the way, a place to stay, which was the palace of his father, Axayácatl. (Don't try to pronounce that lol). Of course, Cortes wanted more, so he demanded gifts of gold which he got, but wait it gets better. He _also_ wanted the two large idols at the main Aztec temple to be removed and in their place, a shrine for the Virgin Mary and a shrine for St. Christopher. But I made Azteca say "their idols" to make fun of this. Then Cortes takes Moctezuma prisoner after everything is said and done, and asks for _more_ gold as a ransom. The Aztec people give him the gold disdainfully...

- _"...Cortés received news from the coast that a much larger party of Spaniards under the command of Pánfilo de Narváez had arrived. Narváez had been sent by Governor Velázquez not only to supersede Cortés, but to arrest him and bring him to trial in Cuba for insubordination, mutiny, and treason."_

This is the complication Spain was talking about, which is why he's going to leave with Cortes. But Cortes wasn't going to leave Tenochtitlan unguarded, so he left 140 men in the city under Pedro de Alvarado, and took the rest with him.

- You'll understand later why Spain keeps telling Azteca he'll make sure Tenochtitlan survives anything that happens.

Reviews to help me improve this story are always appreciated. :3


	3. Consequence

Chapter 3: Consequence

Azteca had been contemplating how she would go about rebelling against Spain and his men. She waited a few days after Cortés took his men and Spain with him to Cuba, to give Pedro de Alvarado a false sense of security. When she felt that he could handle being in charge all by himself, she put her plan into action. She and her people successfully were able to capture Alvarado and his men.

She felt relieved but wondered what would happen if Cortés and Spain should return. She decided to worry about that later and instead went to go hunt for food to prepare a feast for herself and Teno.

Walking back to the city with the other hunters in her party, she saw a person lying on the ground, exhausted. Worried, Azteca ran to him and asked, "Are you all right?"

He looked up at her tiredly and she saw a wound on his side. Feeling like something was gravely wrong, she asked, "What happened?"

"Azteca..." he began, panting. She supposed he had been running. "The city..."

"What about the city?"

"That man...Cortés...he returned sooner than we thought..."

"What?"

"He came back yesterday...while you were away. Moctezuma is still under his rule."

Azteca threw her spear at a nearby cactus out of anger, knocking one of the branches off. The men said nothing but stood quiet waiting to see what Azteca would do.

"As soon as our hunt was over, I planned to devise a new plan in case Cortés returned but..." Something occurred to her just then. A look of panic appeared on her face.

"Where is my son?"

The man looked downcast, worrying Azteca even more. Then he said, "Cortés caught him. He was looking for you, but you weren't anywhere to be found, so he took Teno instead."

"But I left guards with him! What happened to them?"

"I...I don't know... I'm sorry Azteca..."

He stopped talking and she knelt down in front of him, realizing he was no longer breathing. The other men said nothing and just watched her still figure.

Finally one spoke. "Azteca, what do you want to do?"

She walked over to the damaged cactus and removed the spear from the fallen branch. She had her back towards her comrades as she clutched the spear tightly.

"Azteca?"

"We're going back to the city."

"What do we do though? Cortés and his men are occupying it."

"If we don't attack, I'm sure he won't kill us."

"How do you know for sure?"

"I don't, but my son's safety is on the line and I'll do anything to keep him safe."

* * *

Azteca and her men cautiously crossed the waters to the city of Tenochtitlan. The chinampas were floating aimlessly in the water. It was unsettling to Azteca to see them that way. As soon as she and her men set foot near the city, there were Spaniards waiting for them. They seized her and her men.

"If you fight back, we'll kill you," one man said.

"I don't plan to fight back."

"Good, because it would be a shame to kill such a pretty woman."

"Where is my son?" she deadpanned.

The Spanish soldier told his men to take the other hunters back to the city. He then looked at Azteca. "Is that all you care about? Your son's safety?"

"A mother always makes her children a priority. How can you even ask me such a question?"

The man scoffed. "Cortés wants to see you."

"I refuse to see the face of that wretched man."

"He will kill your son if you don't."

"Teno cannot die so easily. He is what I am and what that man Spain is."

"So you want to test that? How about if Cortés stabs your son a dozen times? He may not die, but he'll certainly be in a lot of pain."

Azteca scowled at him and then hung her head. "Fine. I shall go and see him then...as long as Teno is safe."

"Thought so."

* * *

Azteca was taken to the palace of the royal family. There, Cortés was waiting for her, sitting on the throne. La Malinche was standing next to him. Azteca looked at her disdainfully. The traitor.

"Here she is señor," said the man as his guards brought her further inside.

"Azteca," Cortés said tauntingly as he smiled. "It's good to see you again."

She glared at him. "What happened to Moctezuma?"

"Oh he's fine, just under house arrest you could say."

"Where is my son?"

"Who?"

"My son! Tenochtitlan!" She was enraged. "You better not have done anything to him, or you shall regret it Cortés!"

He looked at her, Azteca's expression furious and her eyes aflame with murderous intent.

"Your child is fine." He looked off to the side and shouted, "_España!_"

From the doorway Spain appeared, dragging something behind him. Tenochtitlan had his wrists tied with a rope, Spain leading him to Cortés by the end of the rope. The young boy had been crying, Azteca thought because his cheeks were marked with tear stains.

"Yes _señor Cortés_?" asked Spain. Cortés pointed to Azteca. Tenochtitlan recognized his mother immediately and cried out, "Mamá!"

"Teno!"

He tried to get free, but the rope wouldn't loosen. Azteca asked Cortés, "What happened to the men guarding him?"

"I had them killed. Then I captured your precious little boy."

"You better have not done anything to him!" she shouted.

"Of course not. He's been under Spain's custody this whole time."

"Señor," Spain began. "I think I should free the boy from these ropes."

"Why?"

"Well, a child should never be taken away forcefully from his mother, at least that's what I think."

"Leave him tied up."

"I'd rather not. Look, there is no harm in letting Azteca be reunited with her son. I will take full responsibility should anything happen."

Cortés looked at Spain in silence. Seeing as how he didn't protest, the Nation released Tenochtitlan and the small boy ran to his mother. The guards let her loose and she embraced her child holding him in her arms.

"Mamá!" he cried. Azteca pet her son's hair. "It's okay Teno. I'm here now."

Spain looked at the pair as Azteca comforted her child, wiping the tears from his eyes. He could tell the child had been frightened. After all, though he was smarter and mentally older than children his age, he still psychically resembled a three year old.

"Well Azteca," Cortés began. "I assume you're happy that your child is unharmed?"

The woman looked at her son who buried his head into her shoulder, his arms around her neck. "Teno...did they hurt you in any way?"

He looked at her face and shook his head. "They left he with that man." He pointed toward Spain. "The other people yelled at me words I didn't understand but he didn't. He just made sure I was fed and warm at night."

"So nobody hurt you?"

"No, nobody hurt me mamá."

"You see Azteca? Your son is fine. We wouldn't hurt him."

She only glared at Cortés. He then beckoned his guards and spoke to them in a whisper. Then he spoke to Spain and he looked at Azteca, who was comforting her son in her arms yet again. Spain walked over to Azteca and said, "I'm sure you're tired. Let me take you to your room."

Azteca looked at Spain cautiously but said, "Alright. I assume you're going to be my escort?"

Spain smiled. "_Si señora._ I'd never let a pretty woman like yourself go alone."

"I doubt that. It's probably because Cortés doesn't trust me to go alone."

The Spanish Nation only laughed as he escorted Azteca out the room with a hand on her back. _So that's it then_, she thought to herself.

* * *

When they arrived at her room, Azteca set down Tenochtitlan and he saw his pet turkey perched on a stone chair. He ran to him and picked him up, hugging him and petting his soft feathers. Azteca walked over to her throne-like seat and sat down, hands covering her face in frustration.

Spain walked over to her. "Cortés is going to send guards to stand by your door."

"I hate that man and his people." She peered at him through her fingers. "And I hate you."

"Well that's not a nice thing to say," Spain told her sounding hurt.

"You didn't let me finish."

"Oh?"

"I hate you...but at the same time, I'm grateful. You took care of my son while he was captured and made sure no harm was done to him. So...thank you Spain."

He smiled. "You're welcome. And hey, I did promise you no harm would come to him, and I plan to still keep that promise!"

"Yes you did, and thank you once again Spain."

"Please, just call me Antonio!"

"Antonio? I thought your name was Spain?"

"It is, but I have a mortal name too: Antonio Fernandez Carriedo."

"Hmm. Antonio. I like that name."

"Ha ha! I'm glad!"

"My son doesn't have a mortal name. I never thought about giving him one before. He is just Tenochtitlan. Should I give him a name?"

"If you want."

"Hmm, well I'll think about it."

She watched her son from afar as he pet his turkey. Spain noticed the look in her eyes, a look full of concern. "Spain..."

"Yes?"

"You promise me that no matter what happens, no matter the circumstances...you'll make sure my son survives, correct?"

"I already told you that I promise your son's well-being will not be threatened."

"Okay." There was a pause. "Well I suppose you better get going. I'm tired and I just want to rest."

"Well alright then. I guess I'll see you tomorrow." With that, the Spanish Nation left the room.

Azteca leaned her head back and sighed. _I have a plan_, she thought to herself. _But it's going to be risky. I can do this though, and I must. My people's well-being depends on it, my leader's well-being depends on it, and most importantly, my son's well being depends on it._

* * *

**A/N:** Writing accent marks is a real bitch lemme tell ya. Next chapter I don't think I'm going to keep them there unless they're _really_ needed, like the words with the "ñ" because those do bother me and it feels weird reading a word that is missing that character when it should be there. Oh yeah, any words or phrases in italics, except the ones where the characters are thinking, means that it's being said in Spanish or another language. Too sleepy for notes...but I must do them...

- While Cortes was away, the Aztecs planned a successful revolt and captured the Spanish and their allies who were now at their mercy. Sadly it didn't last.

- Cortes was able to finish his business in Cuba fast enough to return to Tenochtitlan where he recaptured the Aztecs.

- La Malinche is the woman who helped Cortes capture the Aztecs because of her translating ability and even had the nerve to become his lover. I think she even bore him a child. I'm not too sure. That could be my memory failing me again despite my young age, so don't quote me on this.

I think that's all the notes for this chapter. Yeah. Soon we'll see the last of Azteca, and then Tenochtitlan will _really_ suffer without his mommy to be there for him. That poor child.


End file.
